Windsor Christmas Trains: Paddington Line Shut to 3 January

No trains between Slough and Paddington from 27 December to 3 January, and Paddington shuts on 28 and 29 November. Windsor's Slough shuttle keeps running.

Trains between Slough and London Paddington will stop for a week after Christmas. Great Western Railway says engineering work will affect all train services between London Paddington and Slough from Sunday 27 December to Sunday 3 January (GWR planned engineering).

Paddington is also closed to all trains on the weekend of Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November.

GWR’s shuttle from Slough to Windsor & Eton Central keeps running on both occasions. The problem is the next leg. For a week at Christmas, the train from Slough into London is a bus.

What runs from Windsor and Maidenhead, and when

Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November

GWR says the work will affect all train services for London Paddington that weekend. These keep running:

Slough to Windsor & Eton Central, GWR’s branch shuttle.
Maidenhead to Marlow, and Maidenhead on to Didcot Parkway.
The Elizabeth line between Reading and Maidenhead only, with no trains through to London.

Replacement buses leave Slough for Burnham, Taplow and Maidenhead. Another bus route runs from Slough to West Drayton, Hayes & Harlington, Southall, Hanwell, Boston Manor and Ealing Broadway, where you can change to the District and Central lines.

Only the Bakerloo line will stop at Paddington that weekend. There will be no Elizabeth line or Heathrow Express trains to Heathrow.

GWR also warns that SWR trains between Waterloo and Windsor & Eton Riverside are expected to be extremely busy because of international rugby at Twickenham. It says boarding controls and queues will be in place.

Sunday 27 to Wednesday 30 December

This is the hardest stretch. GWR says it will still run Slough to Windsor & Eton Central and Slough to Reading. But nothing runs on the main line east of Slough:

The Elizabeth line runs only between Paddington low level and Abbey Wood or Stratford, plus Romford to Shenfield.
Replacement buses run from Slough to Langley, West Drayton, Hayes & Harlington, Southall, Hanwell, Boston Manor and Ealing Broadway.
A second bus route runs between Slough and Hillingdon, for the Metropolitan and Piccadilly lines.
There are no Elizabeth line or Heathrow Express trains to Heathrow until New Year’s Eve.

Thursday 31 December to Saturday 2 January

The Elizabeth line comes back as far west as Hayes & Harlington and Heathrow, through Paddington low level. Buses fill the gap between Slough and Hayes & Harlington, calling at Langley and West Drayton.

Sunday 3 January

Buses run between Slough and Hayes & Harlington. A second bus route covers Slough, Burnham, Taplow and Maidenhead. GWR says trains run between Maidenhead and Reading or Didcot Parkway that day instead of from Slough.

GWR’s closure map for 3 January still shows the branch from Slough to Windsor & Eton Central running, so Windsor keeps its shuttle on every date.

The Waterloo line is the way in

Windsor & Eton Riverside is on South Western Railway’s line to Waterloo, which does not touch Paddington. GWR’s own page says SWR will be running between Waterloo and Windsor & Eton Riverside over Christmas.

There are two catches, both in GWR’s notice:

Some SWR trains will take an alternative route to and from Waterloo on Sunday 27 and Monday 28 December, which makes journeys longer.
Waterloo to Windsor trains are expected to be extremely busy on Monday 28 December, the substitute Boxing Day bank holiday, because of rugby at Twickenham.

SWR has not yet published its own Christmas detail. Its current notices run to the start of November.

What it means for you

Going to London from Windsor between 27 and 30 December: use Riverside to Waterloo. From Central you will reach Slough by train, then need a bus to Ealing Broadway or Hillingdon.
Flying from Heathrow between 27 and 30 December: the Elizabeth line and Heathrow Express are not running to the airport. GWR points travellers to the Piccadilly line from Boston Manor, which the Slough buses serve.
Travelling to London from Maidenhead on 28 or 29 November: the Elizabeth line runs only towards Reading. Buses run from Slough, so you will need to get there first.
Going to a West End show on 28 or 29 November: Riverside to Waterloo is the direct option, but expect it to be very busy with rugby crowds.
Travelling on Christmas Day or Boxing Day: no trains run anywhere in Britain on Christmas Day, and few on 26 December. Our Christmas trains and travel page has the national picture and will add the last trains on Christmas Eve when they are out.

More Sunday work on the Paddington line

These dates are on the same GWR page. Only two of the four tracks between Paddington and Reading will be open, so trains through Slough and Maidenhead run to an amended timetable:

Sundays 18 and 25 October, with buses replacing trains between Maidenhead and Marlow after 7pm on 25 October.
Sundays 1, 15 and 22 November.
Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December, Sunday 13 December, and Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 December.

GWR adds that the Paddington work also affects Sunday 10 January, with an amended timetable on Sundays 24 and 31 January.

Road closures and this weekend’s Riverside replacement buses are on our roadworks and travel page, and the normal timetable and fares are on Windsor train times to London.

Sources

Great Western Railway, planned engineering, read on 3 October 2026, including the sections “London Paddington, weekend of 28/29 November” and “London Paddington, Sunday 27 December to Sunday 3 January”, and GWR’s closure maps for 27 to 30 December, 31 December to 2 January and 3 January.
National Rail, Christmas and New Year travel, for Christmas Day and Boxing Day.